SubscribeOn a Budget: 7 Tips for Free Diet Support and Advice
This is the final post of the "Dieting on a budget" series.
I've covered how to shop and cook, exercise and eat out healthily on a budget. But where do you go for information and inspiration about dieting? Perhaps you currently buy several diet and fitness related magazines every month, and attend weekly Weight Watchers meetings. Here's seven ways to get advice and support for free:
1. Start your own club
Rather than paying for membership of a diet club (Weight Watchers, Slimming World etc), start your own! Find a few like-minded friends or colleagues: if you send an email round, you might be surprised to find some unexpected people showing an interest in healthy eating. Get together during your lunch hour, or one evening in the week, have a weigh-in and share your tips.
2. Get together with a "diet buddy"
Perhaps you think your diet would be certain to succeed if you had a life coach ... but there's no way you can afford one. How about joining together with a designated "diet buddy" instead? Pick someone who'll help keep you accountable, who you can phone when that candy bar is calling to you. Ideally, you want a friend who is supportive but firm. And, of course, you should be prepared to return the favour.
3. Swap sports skills: coach one another
Another area where costs can quickly mount up is when you pay a personal trainer or a sports coach to teach you a new skill. If you have an acquaintance who's a great baseball player, runner, swimmer, and so on, why not ask them to coach you? In return, either teach them something sporty too (tennis, golf, cycling...) or, if your sports skills are lacking, offer to teach them something else, such as how to cook.
4. Borrow diet and health books from the library
New books promising to reveal the one true secret of weight loss success appear every day in the bookstore. If your shelves are groaning under the weight of barely-read diet plans and motivational writings, try going to the library instead. If you do happen to find a diet book you want to refer back to in the future, you can always buy your own copy afterwards.
5. Read blogs rather than magazines
If books seem in good supply, just think about magazines. There are dozens of monthly publications aimed at dieters, often packed with success stories, product reviews, tips and tricks, and simple diet plans. Rather than forking out cash for this, why not try reading blogs instead? There's a list of great ones on the blogs and links page. Editor's Note: Have a trawl through the Diet Blog archives - or start with this guide to eating right.
6. Join a web forum for advice and support
The interactive nature of the web makes it ideal for getting your questions answered ("How many calories are there in three peanut butter cups?" "What's the best exercise to tone up my arms?") There are loads of diet-related web forums, chat rooms and email groups out there, - check out our list of weight loss support sites.
7. Use free calorie tables online
You can buy books listing calorie information in the store, but why not use online tables instead? It's easier to search for an item on the computer, and some databases of calories hold details for a huge number of different products. A couple of good places to start are Calorie King and Calorie Count.
That's the end of the "Dieting on a budget" series. Hopefully you now know how to make changes to stay on track with your diet when money is tight. As always, share your great tips with us in the comments...
(Photo above by wicked)
Also, check out the free site sparkpeople.com, with its diet logs that calculate calories and other nutrients, and exercise logs that keep track of minutes and calories burned. There are forums, recipes, and a variety of motivational tools. I've paid for Weight Watchers online and eDiets.com and I've found that SparkPeople has more functionality than both of those and it's completely free.
ReplyI really like sparkpeople, too. I lost 35 pounds tracking my diet and exercise on that site. Plus I made some great contacts with others who have helped me in my weight loss effort.
ReplyI've not come across SparkPeople before -- thanks Debi and Melody for the tip!
ReplyGreat tips! There is lots of great information out there about losing weight, just don't fall for the latest fad diets.
ReplyI've found that the library has been an excellent resource for healthy living...you can check out healthy cookbooks, workout DVDs, guidelines for nutrition and special diets, magazine back issues that have diet tips in them, etc....all for free.
ReplyTry E books rather than real books; they tend to be a lot cheaper. My own clinic will be releasing a free e book in August containing diet advice related to hormonal issues, and it's far from the only one.
ReplySorry if that sounded like a plug, it was unintentional.
ReplyI think blogs are a great resource for anyone trying to lose weight, improve nutrition, or just increase knowledge about eating. Blogs are written by passionate and learned people and best of all are easily accessible and free.
ReplyI agree that the wealth of free content on blogs is great for dieters. My one caveat would be to make sure you are reading a reputable blog (like Diet Blog ;-)) -- unfortunately, there is a lot of rubbish out there on the net! Be particularly wary of any blog which seems to exist purely to sell "weight loss products" or advertising for such products...
ReplyI have just visited the sparkpeople.com, what a great site, thanks for recommending it. I generally use ebooks and blogs - I think peoples personal experience and recommendations are really useful.
ReplyI go to cagedanimal.net and sherdog.net for weight lifting and diet advice.
ReplyTo maintain a clean and purify the body it is best to consume adequate amounts in water and foods rich in fiber such as whole grains, legumes, fresh fruits and vegetables.
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